Baggage receptacle



F. B. EMERY BAGGAGE RECEPTAOLI June 26 Filed May 9, 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 26, 1923. 1,460,016

' F. B. EMERY BAGGAGE RECEPTACLE Filed May 9, 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet @311 $1 Mid Patented June 26, 19230 STATES FRANK B. EMERY, 0F PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA.

BAGGAGE REGEPTACLE.

Application filed May 9,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK B. EMERY, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Petersbur in the county of Dinwiddie and State of l irginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Baggage Receptacles; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to baggage receptacles or containers such as trunks, traveling bags,.suit cases, and like articles.

An object of the present invention is to devise a baggage receptacle with separate and distinct compartments, one of which may be used for clean wearing apparel while the other may be utilized for containing the soiled articles, the partitioning members used in forming the subdivisions or compartments being of suitable material that will prevent moisture or odors present in the soiled articles coming in contact with the clean pieces. 1

A further ob'ect is to utilize adjustable means for forming the compartments that will permit the areas of the respective compartments to be varied at will although the aggregate area of the compartments will not, of course, exceed the interior area of the baggage container. This permits the entire capacity of the container to be utilized for fresh articles of clothing when one is starting on a. trip and then, after some of the articles have become soiled by wear, they may be deposited in the compartment for soiled clothing and fresh articles taken from the other compartments, the size of the latter compartment being decreased substantially commensurate with the amount of apparel taken from it and the size of the first mentioned compartment, for soiled clothing, being increased accordingly to accommodate the soiled articles deposited therein.

With the above and further objects in view the invention consists in certain arrangements and combination of parts all as will be described in the following specification and more particularly pointed out in the accompanying claims.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view of a hand bag embodying the present improvements;

1921. Serial No. 468,022.

F ig. 2 is a similar view of a trunk with the invention applied thereto, the partitioning element illustrated in this instance being of rigid material instead of a flexible, pliant material as shown in the Figure 1.

Fig. 3 shows the invention applied to a suit case.

As the objects contemplated by the present invention necessitate but slight changes in the present general construction of the baggage articles to which it is applied, the greater portion of the article is illustrated in the drawings in amore or less conventional manner.

In Fig. 1, the side walls of the bag are designated by the numeral 10 and the bag, which is adapted to be opened at the top as usual for the insertion and removal of ar-' ticles, is provided with the ordinary hand grip 11.

The interior side and end walls of the bag are provided with a lining '12 of anyiv of the flexible, pliant materials commonly used for that purpose or if desired said lining may consist of a special air-tight, waterproofed material. Said lining 12 is preferably glued to the sides or" the bag to a point about half way down where it is then secured by sewing it to the sides the line of stitching 13 running entirely around the bag. The lining 12 hangs loose within the bag from the point where it is sewed and is of sufiicient depth to extend down to the bottom 14: of the bag.

The partitioning member 15 for dividing the bag into separate compartments is con-. nected to the lower edges of lining 12, and as said partition is preferably made of a flexible, pliant material it may, together with the side lining, be made of a single piece of material, although it can, of course,- be made of a separate piece of material and then attached to the lining to form substantially a single continuous piece of material.

The partition member 15 conforms sub stantially to the size and shape of bottom 14 of the bag and divides the interior of said bag into a lower compartment 16 and an upper compartment 17 With the interior of the bag subdivided in this manner, the para tition 15 will lie flat on the bottom 14: when the bag is empty and the area ofcompartment 17 will be equal to that of the bag,.permit-- ting the entire capacity of the bag to be utilized for packing clean articles of clothin the other compartment,

ing or the like. When, however, some of the articles have been worn and become soiled, they can be placed beneath partition 15, an opening 18 being provided in one of the walls of the bag at a point below the partition, said opening preferably being formed in the bottom 14 in baggage containers of the hand bag type. The size of the opening is practically immaterial and it is normally closed by a door 19 having a lock 20 of ordinary construction provided therein for looking it in closed position.

As the soiled clothes are accumulatedthey are 'repacked in compartment 16 on the lower side of partition 15 the partition being moved upwardly within the bag, and as the partition is of a soft, flexible material it will readily adjust itself to the contents of the bag, making the total capacity of the bag always the same and always available regardless of the extent to which the amount of articles packed on either side of the partition varies.

As the lining and partition are of airtight, water-proofed material the two compartments are, in all respects, separate and distinct from one another, and any moisture or odors present in the soiled articles placed in lower compartment 16 cannot possibly come in contact with the unsoiled articles In applying the invention to trunks, the lining 12 is glued to the interior walls 10 to a point about half the depth of the trunk, as shown in Fig. 2, the lining being made of comparatively thin material and not interfering with the tray 21 usually adapted to fold down below the upper edge of the trunk walls. 7

As the quantity of clothing articles capable' of being packed in a large trunk may possibly have an appreciable weight, straps 22 are secured to the side lining 12 near the bottom edges of the latter and the free upper ends of said straps can be secured in suit-- able buckles 23 provided near the top of the side walls 10. These straps facilitate lifting the partition 15 when any large quantity of clothing is in the upper compartment 17 l'n trunks, it is also found convenient and advantageous to locate the opening 18 for insertion and removal of soiled clothing in one of the side walls 10, said opening extending down near the bottom of the trunk so that even though the partition be raised only a short distance from the trunk bottomii, the soiled clothes can, nevertheless be easily placed in the lower compartment 16.

Opening 18 is closed by a door 19 provided with the usual lock 20 and the door being located at the side of the trunk, the necessity of turning the trunk on its side or end to gain access to the lower compartment 1 is eliminated.

packed through the usual top opening, the latter being closed when desired by the top 2a provided withthe usual lock 25.

In the form shown in Fig. 2the partition 15 is formed separate from the lining 12 and is made of any suitable rigid or stiff material. This construction has some advantages in trunks due to the weight that must be supported by the partition but said partition may, if desired, be made of soft, flexible material as described in connection with the handbag shown in Fig. 1.. 1

In both forms the partition divides the baggage container into two separate and distinct compartments and the partition being free to be'moved up or down within the container, dueto the fact that practically the entire lower half of lining 12 is loosely suspended from the walls of the container, said partition can be adjusted to accommodate any quantity of clothing in either compartment within the capacity of the entire receptacle or container.

In Figure 3 the invention is shown embodied in a suit case. Handle 30 is secured to the exterior of one of the side walls 31 and suitable means, such as catch 32, are also attached to said wall for engaging locks 33 on top cover 34: and locking said cover closed, said cover being pivotally mounted on the opposite side wall 31 and adapted to be opened and closed as will be readily understood.

The flexible pliant lining 35 is secured to the interior walls 31 as before described, the lower half of said lining hanging loosely from the walls. This lining 35 extends to the bottom of the suit case and carries at its lower free edge the movable or adjustable partition 36 that can lie flat on the bottom of the case when clothes are packed in the compartment 37 through the top of 'thecase. To permit access to the opposite or bottom side of partition 36 for packing soiled'cloth ing in the other compartment 38, the bottom 39 of the case is pivotally mounted like top cover 341, suitable catches such as indicated at 40 being provided adjacent handle 30 for engaging locks 41 on the bottom cover and retaining said cover closed.

The adjustable partition 35 is adjustable to any position intermediate the top and bottom covers, permittingthe area of the two compartments for clean and soiled clothing to be varied to any desired extent within the capacity of the container. It has been found advantageous in applying the invention to suit cases to pivotally secure the bottom cover 39'as shown and described because in a comparatively light container, such as a suit case, the case can easily be turned on either side and by hinging the bottom cover instead of merely providing a small aperture in the bottom, as in be had to the interior of the case on either side of the partition by opening either of the covers to the positions shown in Fig. 3.

What is claimed is:

1. In a baggage receptacle, the combination of a soft, pliant partition member permanently secured to the upper portions of the side walls of the receptacle and dividing the interior of said receptacle into a plurality of separate, distinct compartments, said partition being movable toward and away from the bottom of the receptacle whereby the areas of the respective compartments may be varied at will, the area of either compartment being limited only by the capacity of the receptacle.

2. In a baggage receptacle, the combina tion of a lining fixedly attached to the up-, per portions of the side walls of the receptacle and extending to the bottom of the receptacle, the lower portion of said lining hanging loosely in the receptacle, a partition member carried by the lower portion of the lining and dividing the interior of the receptacle into a plurality of separated compartments, said partition being movable whereby the areas of the respective compartments may be varied at will, the area of either compartment being limited only by the capacity of the receptacle, and separate means for placing and removing articles in and from the respective compartments. 7

3. In a baggage receptacle, the combination of a flexible interior lining permanently attached to the upper side walls of the receptacle and loosely suspended below its attached portions, a partition member carried by the lining and dividing the interior of the receptacle into two separated compartments, said partition member being movable within the receptacle to vary the areas of the respective compartments at will, the area of either compartment being limited only by the capacity of the receptacle, the aggregate area of the two compartments remaining equal to the area of tion of a flexible interior lining permanently attached to the upper side walls of the re ceptacle and loosely suspended below its attached portions, a partition member secured to the lining and dividing the interior of the receptacle into two compartments, said partition member being flexible to conform to articles placed in the compartments and said member being movable whereby the areas of the respective compartments may be varied at will, the area of either compartment being limited only by the capacity of the receptacle, and separate means permitting access to each of said compartments.

5. In a baggage receptacle having an entrance opening in one of its walls, a lining in the receptacle detached from the lower portion of the sides of the interior of the receptacle, a partition member secured tothe detached portion of said lining within the receptacle dividing said receptacle into two separated compartments, said partition member being movabletoward and away from said entrance opening whereby the areas of the respective compartments may be varied at will, the area of either compartment being limited only by the capacity of the receptacle.

6. In a baggage receptacle, the combination of an interior lining having its lower portion freely suspended in the receptacle, a partition secured to the free lower portion of said lining and dividing the receptacle into a plurality of separate, distinct compartments, there being an entrance opening in each of two of the walls of the receptacle, said openings being on opposite sides of the partition and each communicating with one of the compartments, and means for closing the entrance openings,

FRANK B. EMERY. 

